Word: ellington
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...Ellington's concert last Thursday night was a distinct success. The band was rather nervous, the audience applauded the soloists too often, the ushers kept seating people during numbers, and the feature selection, "Black, Brown, and Beige," was as episodic and spotty as reported. Yet, confronted with over two solid (in more than one respect) hours of Ellingtonia, I can only report that Duke lived up to and confirmed all but the very highest expectations. If "B B and B" did not successfully bring jazz to the concert stage, it did not deny the existence of Ellington's genius...
Except for the over-abundant applause, the concert-hall seems to be a perfectly dandy place to hear Ellington's music, and it is a pity that he is so late in arriving there. From now on, Duke should make it a point of giving concerts at least once every two years. The tremendous turn-out in spite of the weather shows that his popularity is not restricted to jazz esoterics and a few classicists who've lost their grip...
...remainder of the previously unheard compositions, except for "B B and B," consisted of "Going Up" from his new picture, "Cabin in the Sky," and a group of recorded, but as yet unreleased numbers. The first seemed rather senseless and blatant, but as is typical with Ellington, this impression will probably wear off on further hearings. The others were impressive, especially an unnamed blues...
...spectacular sellout, is expected to net at least $5,000. Dressed in grey coats, each with a jet black carnation in his buttonhole, Ellington's 15 musicians played many such Ellington favorites as the Black and Tan Fantasy, Mood Indigo, Rockin' in Rhythm. Duke affably prowled before his men in his sweeping tails, conducting, adding neat phrases on the piano, introducing his numbers with graceful speeches. His music, as usual, was practically all by himself (with heavy contributions in orchestration and improvising from the boys). It was incandescent, original jazz, sometimes ebullient, sometimes languid, the product...
Aside from the magnificent sartorial spectacle which the Ellington band provides on any stage, Duke in 20 years has made practically no concessions to public taste. He was born in Washington, D.C. in 1899. His father, a retired Navy Yard blueprint worker, was comparatively well off. The Ellington family owned its own home and even an auto with a bulb horn. Ellington was given piano lessons at the age of six but went through high school expecting to be a painter...